It’s probably an easier job, too, when the coaching group is well-established, and there is potentially a perfect storm brewing when a new captain who has never done the job before and is short of confidence and game time, combined with a new coaching team who are finding their way into international rugby, meet an opponent on the rise.
Barrett, who was universally recognised as the best lock in the country last year, has had a difficult 2024.
He missed five weeks with a broken finger, and then on Saturday lasted barely 10 minutes before he gingerly took himself to the sideline to protect a tweaked back.
The Crusaders may only have four games of this season left if they can’t muster enough points to scramble into the playoffs, and the prospect of Barrett coming into the first test of the year short of game time and confidence is decidedly real.
As brave a face he and his Crusaders teammates continue to put on this season, the mounting losses, media scrutiny and sheer unexpected nature of their predicament in having fallen as far and as fast as they have will have riddled Barrett with doubts.
He’s human and doubts are natural when a team suddenly fall off a cliff, and that will have been intensified by an element of angst and frustration at not having been able to play a central role to influence matters.
Barrett has shown himself to be physically tough and mentally resilient over the years – bouncing back from serious injuries, red cards and World Cup disappointments – but still, it must be questioned whether it will be asking too much of him to pick himself up from a disastrous Crusaders campaign and then lead the All Blacks against England.
Maybe the right path is a soft transition into the role – for Robertson to name Barrett as his captain but ask Ardie Savea to lead the team in July to not burden the skipper-elect with that additional pressure until he’s found his form and confidence.
The alternative option is to simply make Savea the captain permanently.
But Robertson might carry an element of discomfort about that because the world’s best player has skipped Super Rugby in 2024 to play in Japan.
Savea ticks almost every box imaginable – he’s a brilliant player, guaranteed to start, commands global respect and has done the job before.
But playing in Japan may be a niggle, not just for the optics of rewarding someone for playing offshore but also because of the inevitability it may take Savea, no matter his inordinate talent, time to adjust to the bigger athletes and more physical nature of the rugby he will be playing.
Sam Cane, the incumbent captain, is also in Japan and hasn’t played for the better part of two months now, and so all the same arguments can be made about why he’s not the right choice either.
None of the three men who are recognised to be the candidates under consideration for the captaincy provide a deep degree of comfort that they will be ready and the best version of themselves by early July.
The only player who has come close to looking and playing like an All Blacks captain for most of this season is Patrick Tuipulotu.
The Blues skipper, after breaking his jaw pre-season, has returned to action fitter, harder, edgier and more prominent than he’s ever been.
He’s making smart tactical decisions, keeping all those around him calm, and playing with the sort of selfless commitment and energy that inspires.
The only doubt is whether he can be considered a definite starter for the All Blacks, but in his current form, the answer would be yes.
